Steve Williams

Biography

Key strengths and experience: Extensive industry, legal and board experience. Steve was General Counsel and Chief Legal Officer of Unilever plc and Unilever NV from 1986 until 2010. From 2004 until 2010 he was Senior Independent Director of Arriva Plc. From 1995 until 2004 he was a Non-Executive Director of Bunzl plc. External appointments: Steve is a Non-Executive Director of Whitbread PLC where he is also Chairman of the Remuneration Committee. In addition, Steve is a Non-Executive Director of Eversheds LLP and a senior adviser to Spencer Stuart LLP. He is Chairman of the De La Warr Pavilion Charitable Trust and a member of the Board of Leverhulme Trust and Moorfields NHS Trust. 

Research Interest

Established in 1955, Croda Italy was the first subsidiary of Croda International Plc. Croda Italy serves the markets of Italy, Slovenia and Croatia. IRB, established in 1999 as a private Biotech start-up company, was acquired in 2012, by Croda. IRB has through the years developed a unique plant cell culture platform to extract active ingredients mainly for cosmetic and health care applications that integrate the Sederma portfolio. The team at Croda Italy are dedicated to continuous improvement. We undertake Croda 1% Club activities within our local community and universities. We are the name behind the high performance ingredients and technologies in some of the biggest, most successful brands in the world: creating, making and selling speciality chemicals that are relied on by industries and consumers everywhere. We create, make and sell speciality chemicals that deliver real benefits to a range of diverse products including health and beauty, engine lubricants, plastics and many more. Our business is split into three core market sectors: Personal Care; Life Sciences made up of Crop Care and Health Care and Performance Technologies made up of Coatings and Polymers; Geo Technologies; Home Care; Lubricants and Polymer Additives. We also have an Industrial Chemicals business area. In all areas of our business our focus is on developing and delivering innovative ingredients sustainably.